(Photo: Christie’s / Tiziano Vecellio)
Once stolen and later found at a London bus stop, a Renaissance painting with a storied past is set to fetch up to $32 million at an upcoming art auction. Tiziano Vecellio's early masterpiece, "The Rest on the Flight Into Egypt," discovered in 2002 by former art detective Charles Hill, will be a highlight of Christie's "Art from Antiquity to the 20th Century" exhibition, which will be held from July 2 to 10 in London.
Description and Significance
Painted around the first decade of the 16th century, Vecellio's work depicts a tender moment of respite for Joseph, Mary, and the infant Jesus during their flight to Egypt, fleeing King Herod's decree. As described by Christie, "Her feet planted firmly on the ground, the Madonna wraps Jesus in a protective embrace at the center of the canvas. The pair are shown in suspended animation, in an intimate moment of tenderness between mother and son. The latter, somewhat fidgety, leans into his mother, tugging at her hair."
Tiziano Vecellio, better known as Titian, is believed to have painted this masterpiece around the age of 20 in Venice. The painting's early provenance traces back to the collection of a 17th-century Venetian spice merchant before its sale to English nobleman James Hamilton in 1638, after which it was transported to London. The artwork was later acquired by Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria and taken to Vienna, only to be looted by Napoleonic troops during the French occupation of the city in 1809.
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Later Ownership and Theft
The painting's tumultuous journey continued upon the death of its next owner, a Scottish landowner. Christie's sold it to John Alexander Thynne, the fourth Marquess of Bath, and it became part of the collection at Longleat House, the Thynne family estate in Wiltshire, England. However, in 1995, the masterpiece was stolen from Longleat House under mysterious circumstances.
The painting had been missing for seven years, but the outstanding art detective Charles Hill found its location. Hill came across the early Titian piece in the street, left in a bag, which he picked up at a bus stop in southwest London in 2002. He could return it to Longleat, but the fate of the theft and where it had been for all these years was never really resolved.
Upcoming Auction and Exhibition
Now, "The Rest on the Flight Into Egypt" is ready to be sold again, and the starting price for this picture at Christie's ranges between $ 19 to $ 31 ml. 7 million. The painting will be shown in an exhibition of artistic production of different epochs running from antiquity to the twentieth century, and a whole array of collectors and art lovers from other parts of the world will be attracted to the event.
That brings us to the next chapter in the painting's long and storied history - the upcoming auction combines the fascination with the Renaissance and the high-profile adventures of the artwork. Finally, drawing attention to the work of art at Christie's and the importance of art in general, this work elevates Titian's talent. It proves the timelessness and relevance of historical masterpieces. What is fascinating about the painting is how it has traveled from belonging to a Venetian merchant to becoming an object of curiosity at a London bus stop and is now headed to an auction.
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